Hitman email scams

Death threat email scams are on increase

Every day brings new and often more vicious Internet scams and hoaxes.
Fake check scams, fake business offers, fake lottery awards and other email scams are common tactics used by thieves attempting to separate the public from its money.
A new tactic being perpetrated against the public has a much more sinister tone. It is a scam/hoax that may originate from former Soviet Block countries in Eastern Europe. An unknown number of these emails were sent, apparently to random recipients, during the first week of July. I received this on July 9, 2008:

"ATTENTION: ATTENTION: ATTENTION:

I felt very sorry and bad for you, that your life is going to end like this if you don't comply, I was paid to eliminate you and I have to do it within 10 days.
Someone you call your friend wants you dead by all means, and the person have spent a lot of money on this, the person came to us and told us that he wants you dead and he provided us your names, photograph and other necessary information we needed about you. If you are in doubt with this I will send you your name and where you are residing in my next mail.
Meanwhile, I have sent my boys to track you down and they have carried out the necessary investigation needed for the operation, but I ordered them to stop for a while and not to strike immediately because I just felt something good and sympathetic about you. I decided to contact you first and know why somebody will want you dead by all means. Right now my men are monitoring you, their eyes are on you, and even the place you think is safer for you to hide might not be.
Now do you want to LIVE OR DIE? It is up to you. Get back to me now if you are ready to enter deal with me, I mean life trade, who knows, and I might just spear, (spare), your life, $8,000 is all you need to spend. You will first of all pay $3,000 then I will send the tape of the person that want you dead to you and when the tape gets to you, you will pay the remaining $5,000. If you are not ready for my help, then I will have no choice but to carry on the assignment after all I have already being paid before now.
Warning: do not think of contacting the police or even tell anyone because I will extend it to any member of your family since you are aware that somebody want you dead, and the person knows some members of your family as well.
For your own good I will advise you not to go out once is 7pm until I make out time to see you and give you the tape of my discussion with the person who want you dead then you can use it to take any legal action. Good luck as I await your reply to this E-mail contact.
Bye."
It was signed "may your soul rest in peace" and had a return email address at gala.net. The gala.net website is based in the Ukrainian area of Eastern Europe.
Law enforcement officials urge the public not to respond to this or similar emails. The incident should be reported to Internet service and email providers, as well as to the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center division at www.ic3.gov and to local and state law enforcement officials.
FBI spokesman, Paul Bresson of the Washington, DC headquarters, said complaints about the scam began in December 2006. The emails were traced to Russia.
Within weeks the FBI issued a scam alert. Since then, the emails have gone through various evolutions and changes in wording and style. The emails threaten to assassinate the recipient unless the assassin is paid sums ranging from $150,000 to $3,000 and less.
The emails claim that the victims are being followed by hitmen who were hired by co-workers, friends and others. It warns the recipient not to go to police or family members would be killed.
In June of this year, the hitman scam emails were being sent as text messages to cell phone recipients, Bresson said. The scam appears then vanishes and is reincarnated with a slightly different twist, he said.
"Many of the emails are poorly written, contain bad grammar and broken English," Bresson said. "The more personal and specific the information ... such as home address, wife and daughter's names and other details, the greater the concern that the threats could be real."
In cases where the victim is addressed by name, lists family details, work details and other specific information, police should be notified immediately, Bresson said. In most cases, recipients of the email are in no real danger.
"Better safe than sorry," Bresson said. "We first take the information and analyze it based on sender location, contents of message, location of recipient and other factors. That information is then transferred to the appropriate local, state federal or international law enforcement agency."
Bresson said the Internet Crime Complaint Center complaint process detailed step-by-step. The standardization of the way the information is taken allows for investigators to provide leads to the criminals. It also contains a "FAQ," frequently asked questions section, contact information and links to other sites that list the latest Internet scams.
"It's important to educate the public about this scam," Bresson said. "It can be a frightening message to receive for many people."
For more information on this and other scams, visit www.snopes.com/crime/fraud/hitman.asp. The website has a compilation of information on hoaxes, scams, urban legends and misinformation.